Courtesy the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

(September 29, 2010) With the demise of 1250 ESPN, once the leader in sport-talk in Pittsburgh, the future of the genre in the region remains unknown, although, most certainly, The Fan, just seven months old, is the new king.

But in what direction will The Fan move in the days ahead?

Now that its main competition has been removed, will it gather its spoils -- new listeners, new advertisers -- and merely stay the course?

Or will it choose to flex its new power to seek even higher ground in the Pittsburgh market, which, after all, has been its long-stated goal? Since its inception, The Fan has not been shy in letting it be known it has higher aspirations than just being the sports-talk leader. Sports talk represents a small niche in the overall radio market and The Fan has maintained it wants to challenge the big boys -- WDVE and WXDX -- two stations that at key times in the day add a heavy dose of sports to their music formats.

And what about Fox Sports Radio 970? Will it maintain its fairly low profile or will it consider this a good time to attempt to expand its audience?

Best bets are that both stations will maintain the status quo for the present. But what about the future? There are some big-time free agents available.

When 1250 ESPN shut down, it put the two best-known talk-show hosts in Pittsburgh -- Stan Savran and Guy Junker -- on the market. Neither, according to ESPN vice-president Tim McCarthy, is bound by a no-compete clause.

Savran has been doing talk radio in Pittsburgh on and off -- but mostly on -- since the 1970s. It's his first love in radio. I talked to him Monday just minutes after he had officially been informed ''Stan & Guy'' would be no more. He clearly wants to continue working.

''I love talk radio,'' he said. ''I like it more than other duties I've performed in this business. I like the opportunity to have an avenue to vent and to express my opinion because I love sports and hearing other people's opinion. It's a perfect format for me.''

Savran has been called old-school and it's tag that wouldn't offend him. But what's really new in sports-talk radio? From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on The Fan, what they do also is old-school talk. Savran would in no way be out of place at the station.

His many fans want to know if he'll be hired. That's unlikely in the immediate future.

That's a loss for Pittsburgh radio. He and Junker remain the best in the market for my taste and go back to the days when they were teamed on ''SportsBeat,'' for many years until Junker was fired.

''The saddest part for me [beside losing the show] is not being able to continue to work with Guy,'' Savran said. ''When he left ''SportsBeat,'' we both thought it would never happen again. It did but it didn't last.''

As for Junker, the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. slot in the 1250 studios was a perfect fit because it enabled him to handle his primary job as sports director of WTAE-TV, which is in the same building. Even if there were jobs available, so long as they were not in the WTAE building, it would be nearly impossible for Junker to accept.

Not so with Bob Pompeani of KDKA-TV. He could work a mid-day shift into his television duties and would be an excellent host. He provides high name recognition, strong knowledge of Pittsburgh sports and, of course, an excellent presence. Hard to believe The Fan did not approach him when it was creating its original staff.

Ellis Cannon is another free-agent. Cannon ran a successful sport-talk show on 104.7 for several years before being fired about 10 months ago. If he had a no-compete clause, it will be up soon.

That's a lot of available talent for not a lot of jobs.

Another ''free-agent'' is ESPN national programming, particularly its hugely successful a.m. drive-time show, ''Mike and Mike in the Morning.'' There was a rumor circulating yesterday that ''Mike and Mike'' would eventually end up on The Fan, which would be a radical departure from its strong local format.

One industry source contacted dismissed the idea and said if it ever came to fruition it would indicate The Fan was in serious trouble.

That is not the case today. The Fan is in charge. It remains to be seen what it will do with this new role.

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